I’ve gotten into the habit of buying one pound logs of goat cheese from Costco and since goat cheese goes bad faster than other varieties, I’m always trying to quickly use it in several different ways after opening the package – there’s nothing worse than wasting goat cheese! So after enjoying it in my Caramelized Onion and Goat Cheese Potato Stacks, I decided to finally use some in a breakfast dish inspired by the frittata I had with Meghan at Yolk during our visit to Chicago last November!

The frittata at Yolk features “chicken breast, sun dried tomatoes, fresh basil, and red diced potatoes all scrambled together and baked. Topped with goat cheese.” Mmm, I love all these ingredients and didn’t want to change a thing, so I put the potatoes, sun dried tomatoes, and chicken all in a frittata, along with red pepper and shallots, and then topped the frittata with goat cheese and fresh basil when it came out of the oven. There’s nothing better than breakfast for dinner and it reheated beautifully for lunch the next day too.

Tuscan Frittata
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
2 tablespoons olive oil
3 red potatoes, chopped into chunks
1/3 cup chopped shallots
1 cup chopped red pepper
1 cooked boneless, skinless, chicken breast, sliced into strips
1/3 cup chopped sun dried tomatoes
10 large eggs
1/2 cup milk
1 teaspoon salt
4 ounces goat cheese
3 tablespoons freshly chopped basil

Directions:
Heat oven to 350˚F. Heat olive oil over medium heat in a 10-inch oven-proof skillet and sauté potatoes for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add shallots and red pepper to the skillet and sauté 5 additional minutes or until veggies are tender (the potatoes will continue to cook in the oven so it’s ok if they are slightly underdone at this point). Remove from heat and stir in chicken breast strips and sun dried tomatoes.

Meanwhile, whisk eggs, milk, and salt together in a large bowl. Pour egg mixture into the pan over the other ingredients and bake at 350˚F for 20 to 25 minutes or until eggs are set. Evenly sprinkle goat cheese on top and return to oven for 2 to 3 minutes or until goat cheese is warmed through. Remove from oven and top with fresh basil. Makes 6 servings.

Nutrition: 398 calories, 20.7g fat, 2.8g fiber, 28.8g protein per serving
Cost: $1.43 per serving

It’s finally time for our Lithuania trip recap! We traveled throughout the country and I’m going to spread the highlights of our adventure over the next three posts. Lithuania is the same size as West Virginia and sits above Poland and Belarus and across the Baltic Sea from Sweden. We flew into Vilnius, which is the capital and largest city in the country. Apolinaras was born and raised in Vilnius so I was very excited to finally see where he grew up! His mom met us at the airport and we headed over to his condo, where she had stocked the fridge with all his favorite Lithuanian goodies that just aren’t the same in the states (e.g. pickled herring, pickles, kefir). Apolinaras looked like a little boy opening his Christmas presents as he went through the fridge – it was just about the cutest thing ever and so sweet of his mom.

For the next couple of days we explored the city and visited many of Apolinaras’ friends and family members. I absolutely loved Vilnius. Like many European cities, the juxtaposition of gorgeous cathedrals and old winding streets filled with quaint rows of shops and apartments made me swoon. I also loved all the green space. There are parks throughout the city and Apolinaras’ condo is right next to a large national forest.

We climbed up the tower of a fort in the middle of the city to take in impressive views and also visited several churches where Apolinaras played the pipe organ when he was younger. This particular church is where people like to meet each other in the city center and we kept the tradition alive by meeting a few of Apolinaras’ friends there.

One of the highlights was going to a folk art festival with traditional Lithuanian music, art, and food. We leisurely browsed all stalls and picked up some wooden treasures including hand carved wall decorations for our kitchen and an adorable cutting board shaped like a pig.

Lithuanian artisans are also known for their linens, amber, and ceramics, so I got several gorgeous amber necklaces and linen pouches to store them in.

As you can probably guess, I was especially excited to try all the traditional Lithuanian culinary specialities. Most Lithuanian dishes are centered around the bounty of the farmland and dairy industry and contain sausage, potatoes, mushrooms, eggs, cottage cheese, and butter. They also have the best dark rye breads and amazing beer!

The zeppelins really stole the show for me – they are huge potato dumplings (the size of a regular potato!) stuffed with either sausage or cottage cheese and topped with bacon or mushrooms in a cream sauce – talk about the ultimate comfort food! And yes, they do eat a few veggies too, the most popular of which are beets, cucumbers, and cabbage. Oh, and between the 2000 lakes and Baltic Sea, fish is also on many menus and it’s often smoked or pickled.

Apolinaras’ mom made us several delicious traditional Lithuanian dishes during our stay including crepes stuffed with cottage cheese and topped with jam, potato dumpling soup, and fried potato pancakes, but my favorite meal was this lovely baked cottage cheese tart that also contained rice, eggs, and raisins. We ate it for dinner, but many people also eat it for breakfast and I knew I wanted to recreate something similar once we returned home. I mixed fresh blueberries and lemon zest into my version and enjoyed a big slice for breakfast last weekend. Next up are our visits to the countryside and resort towns by the Baltic Sea!

Blueberry Cottage Cheese Squares
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
2 cups 2% cottage cheese
2 cups cooked brown rice, at room temperature
3 large eggs, lightly beaten
1/4 cup sugar
Zest of one lemon, finely chopped
1 pint fresh blueberries (about 2 cups)

Directions:
Heat oven to 350˚F. Mix cottage cheese, brown rice, eggs, sugar, and lemon zest thoroughly in a large bowl until well combined. Gently fold in blueberries and pour mixture into a greased 8×8-inch square pan.  Bake at 350˚F for 45 to 50 minutes or until tart is set. Makes 4 servings.

Nutrition: 318 calories, 4.4g fat, 3.7g fiber, 19.8g protein per serving
Cost: $1.20 per serving

I hope everyone had a lovely Mother’s Day celebration! My parents have made it a tradition to visit us in Boston over the holiday and this year the highlights were visiting Castle Island, attending a cookbook signing with my mom (more on this in a future post!), and heading out for a couple of jogs with my dad, who has done several half marathons and is an amazing and inspirational runner. We jogged around the Charles River and Boston Common on Friday and then did a 5K race on Sunday morning that benefited the Dana Farber Cancer Institute. My dad was nice and slowed down his usual pace so he could run alongside me both days, which was really fun. I never know how fast I’m running outside (although a smartphone with RunKeeper is on my current wish list), so I was completely shocked that my official 5K time was 27:19, which is an 8:49 minute per mile pace! I crushed my first 5K time by almost 5 minutes and I thought this course was more difficult than the first one because there were a couple of hard hills. I recently started training for my first triathlon, which I’ll be doing in August with Shannon, and I’m excited that all my extra time at the gym is already paying off!

Anyway, in honor of Mother’s Day I wanted to come up with a recipe for my mom. I’ve mentioned before that she loves pancakes and I was recently inspired to make a version inspired by Banana Boats, my favorite Girl Scout campfire treat, when I smelled a bonfire during a recent bike ride. Does anyone else remember these? You split a banana open and stuff it with chocolate and marshmallows and then wrap it in tinfoil and put it on the fire until all the components are warm and gooey – yum! So for these pancakes I put chocolate chips and mini marshmallows in the batter and then topped the pancakes with banana slices. They are delicious with syrup or a peanut butter drizzle!

Banana Boat Pancakes
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
1 cup white whole wheat flour
1 1/2 tablespoons sugar
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 egg
1 cup plus 2 tablespoons buttermilk
2 tablespoons butter, melted
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips
1 cup mini marshmallows
1 banana, sliced
2 tablespoons peanut butter
2 tablespoons milk

Directions:

Mix the flour, sugar, cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda and salt together in a medium bowl. Stir in the egg, buttermilk, butter, and vanilla extract until just combined. Stir in the chocolate chips and mini marshmallows.

Pour 1/4 cup scoops of batter onto a greased nonstick skillet over medium heat. Flip the pancakes when bubbles start to appear on top, after about 3 minutes. Cook the other side until golden brown. Makes 9 pancakes.

Top pancakes with banana slices. Mix peanut butter and milk in a small bowl until smooth and drizzle over pancakes. Makes 3 servings.

Nutrition: 593 calories, 24.8g fat, 4.3g fiber, 14.3g protein per serving
Cost: $1.67 per serving

Cinco de Mayo is almost here! I’m planning on making a recipe from my new Rick Bayless cookbook on Wednesday, but couldn’t resist starting the celebration early by whipping up these tasty breakfast tostadas this weekend. I will always have a fond spot in my heart for Cinco de Mayo due to Wheel of Fortune. I know you’re thinking, huh, what’s the connection there? Well, a couple years ago while we were still in Chicago, I auditioned for the show when the Wheelmobile came to town. Thousands of people showed up and they packed about 500 of us at a time into a theater in Joliet. About 20 people were randomly called up to the stage in each group, and if your name wasn’t picked, you could wait in line all over again for another chance. It must have been my lucky day because I was immediately called up to the stage and solved the puzzle, which was “Cinco de Mayo!” I was rewarded with a tshirt and a spot in a call-back audition. I aced the written puzzle test, but unfortunately didn’t get picked for the show, which I attributed to the fact that I would have towered over Pat Sajak. It was a cool experience though and the term “Cinco de Mayo” now always makes me smile.

Anyway, for the breakfast tostadas I crisped up some whole wheat tortillas under the broiler and covered them with scrambled eggs. Then I made a chunky salsa of sorts from black beans, corn, roasted red peppers, avocado, and lime juice, to top the eggs. I covered the tostadas with cheese and popped them back in the broiler until the cheese melted – yum! You can also drizzle a bit of salsa on top if you have it around. They were very filling and I had a whole one for dinner one night, but half a serving definitely filled me up for breakfast. Happy Cinco de Mayo!

Breakfast Tostadas
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
4 whole wheat tortillas
16 large eggs
1 15-ounce can black beans, rinsed and drained
1 cup cooked corn
1 12-ounce jar roasted red peppers, chopped
1 avocado, peeled, pitted, and chopped
Juice of one lime
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1 cup salsa, if desired

Directions:
Heat broiler. Place tortillas on several cookie sheets and broil on each side for 1 to 2 minutes or until toasted.

Place eggs in a large greased nonstick skillet and cook 5 to 7 minutes or until cooked, stirring frequently. Top crispy tortillas evenly with scrambled eggs.

Meanwhile, mix black beans, corn, roasted red peppers, avocados, lime juice, and salt in a large bowl. Spoon 3/4 cup of mixture evenly over eggs on each tortilla and top with cheddar cheese. Return tostadas to the oven and broil for one minute or until cheese is melted. Top with salsa, if desired. Makes 4 servings.

Nutrition: 773 calories, 40.1g fat, 16.2g fiber, 46.1g protein per serving
Cost: $2.38 per serving

My favorite dinner to make when I’m cooking dinner for one is breakfast. Apolinaras isn’t a huge fan, so I always jump at the chance to whip up a broccoli cheddar omelet, turkey bacon, and whole wheat toast with jam when he’s out of town or at one of his late night networking events. I normally lean towards savory breakfast options over sweet ones, but I recently thought it would be fun to combine the best of both worlds in a savory French toast.

My idea was to make a cornbread packed with the goodness of caramelized shallots, pancetta, and sun-dried tomatoes, similar to this one, and then stuff slices of it with mascarpone cheese before frying it up as French toast. Now while I had a feeling the flavors would complement each other well, this was one of those experiments that I wasn’t completely confident would work. My main concern was about the syrup – I certainly wouldn’t consider the dish a true French toast if I didn’t enjoy syrup on top! So I hesitantly poured on some pure maple syrup and tentatively took a bite – then I promptly woofed down the entire slice standing in the kitchen without even sitting down at the table….oops. The French toast exceeded my expectations and reminded me of something that would be served in one of my favorite brunch spots, the Bongo Room in Chicago (oh how I miss you!). I will definitely be making this again!

Mascarpone Stuffed Cornbread French Toast
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:

Cornbread:
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 cup chopped shallots
1/2 cup diced pancetta
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup yellow cornmeal
2 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
2 large eggs
1 cup buttermilk
1/2 cup chopped sun-dried tomatoes

French Toast:
1/2 cup mascarpone cheese
1/2 cup milk
2 eggs
1 tablespoon butter
1/3 cup pure maple syrup

Directions:
To make the cornbread, heat oven to 350˚F. Heat olive oil over medium heat in a large nonstick skillet. Sauté shallots for 15 to 17 minutes, stirring frequently, or until caramelized; remove shallots from pan. Add pancetta to the pan and cook over medium high heat for 6 to 8 minutes or until browned; remove from pan and drain on paper towels.

Meanwhile, combine flour, cornmeal, sugar, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl. Whisk together butter, eggs, and buttermilk in a large bowl. Stir the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients until most of the lumps are dissolved. Stir in the caramelized shallots, pancetta, and sun-dried tomatoes. Pour the batter into a greased 9-inch bread pan. Bake at 350˚F for 40 to 45 minutes or until golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Cool for 5 minutes in the pan and then use a knife to cut around the edges. Turn pan over and remove the loaf of bread. Let cool completely, about 2 hours. Cut into 8 slices.

To make the French toast, spread 2 tablespoons mascarpone cheese on 4 slices of cornbread and place the other 4 slices on top to form 4 sandwiches. Whisk milk and egg together in a shallow dish and dip sandwiches in egg mixture. Heat butter over medium high heat in a large nonstick skillet.  Place sandwiches in the pan and fry until golden brown on both sides, about 5 minutes. Drizzle maple syrup over each piece of stuffed French toast. Makes 8 servings.

Nutrition: 438 calories, 24.8g fat, 2.0g fat, 11.0g protein per serving
Cost: $1.03 per serving

Apolinaras and I have a similar outlook on life and agree on all major issues that couples tend to fight over (family, money, politics, etc), but sparks always fly over desserts! I like to indulge in treats laden with butter and sugar since I don’t bake very often and feel like one real cookie satisfies my cravings more than several more healthy imitators. Apolinaras, on the other hand, is a health nut and is always trying to convince me to lighten things up. Unfortunately, this means I usually end up baking something only one of us actually enjoys. This needs to change! So, I decided to challenge myself this weekend and see if I could whip up a batch of muffins that weren’t completely bad for you that I would actually still gobble up with a smile.

I had a bunch of golden raisins left after making a Moroccan Beef Meatball Tagine from a recent issue of Bon Appetit, so I decided to center my muffins around them. Although applesauce is commonly added to low fat baked goods to keep them moist, I didn’t want to buy a jar just for one recipe, so I decided to puree a pear instead. In addition, I reduced the amount of sugar I normally use, used low fat sour cream and white whole wheat flour, and topped the muffins with an almond meal crumble topping. These muffins tasted like coffee cake AND Apolinaras wasn’t completely disgusted by the nutritional profile – problem solved! Well, for muffins at least…

Golden Raisin Almond Crumble Muffins
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:

Crumble Topping:
2 tablespoons butter, melted
1/3 cup firmly packed brown sugar
2/3 cup almond meal

Muffins:
1 medium Barlett Pear, peeled, cored, and chopped
1/2 cup low fat sour cream
1/4 cup butter, melted
2/3 cup granulated sugar
1 large egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup white whole wheat flour
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup chopped golden raisins

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350˚F. Line a 12-cup muffin pan with cups. To make the crumble topping, mix the melted butter, brown sugar, and almond meal in a small bowl.

To make the muffins, pulse pears and sour cream in a food processor until smooth (I had 1 cup of liquid after pulsing); place in a large bowl and stir in butter, sugar, egg, and vanilla extract until smooth. Stir in flour, cinnamon, ginger, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Stir in golden raisins.

Scoop muffin batter evenly into the 12 prepared muffin cups. Top muffins evenly with the crumble topping. Bake at 350˚F for 20 to 25 minutes or a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean. Makes 12 muffins.

Nutrition: 260 calories, 14.2g fat, 2.2g fiber, 3.3g protein per serving
Cost: $0.34 per serving

Happy New Year! Did anyone else make any foodie resolutions? My goal last year was to get my blog up and running, and I remember spending the first few weekends in January designing the header and side bars for my little site. This year I just want to continue challenging myself in the kitchen and would like to cook at least one new recipe a week. I made a lot of progress in this area last year – I roasted my first chicken, played with royal icing and fondant, and conquered my fear of yeast. But, I have an ever-growing list of foods to master! I want to finally learn how to cook all the different cuts of meat, conquer pasta, and make my favorite Indian dish, saag paneer (if anyone has an Indian cookbook recommendation, please let me know!). Oh, and I’m hoping to convince my family to let me host Thanksgiving! I could go on and on… I spent part of today organizing and prioritizing the long list of recipes I’ve saved from around the blogosphere and my cookbooks, and I’m already looking forward to getting in the kitchen! Things definitely started out on the right track because I braised lamb for the first time last night and it turned out perfectly! I also wanted to make something special for our first 2010 breakfast.

I was inspired by Elly’s delicious moussaka a few months ago and really liked how the potatoes were fried first and then served as the base of the dish.  So, I decided potatoes needed to be used in this way in a breakfast casserole. I topped the potatoes with shredded gruyere, mushrooms, and asparagus, and then poured an egg mixture on top – so good! I made enough for an 8 inch square pan, but the recipe can easily be doubled for a 13×9 if you’re having company. You can also fry up the potatoes and cook the veggies the night before so all you have to do in the morning is whip up the eggs! Yay for 2010!

Egg and Potato Squares with Gruyere, Asparagus, and Mushrooms
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 large baking potato, peeled and sliced lengthwise
1 cup shredded gruyere cheese
2 cups sliced mushrooms (8 ounces)
1 cup sliced asparagus (4 ounces)
4 large eggs
3/4 cup milk
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350˚F. Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium high heat and pan-fry the potatoes on both sides until they are light golden brown. Place the fried potatoes slices evenly in the bottom of a greased 8×8-inch baking dish. Sprinkle gruyere cheese evenly on top.

Heat 1/2 tablespoon olive oil in the same skillet and sauté mushrooms for 5 to 7 minutes until tender. Repeat with remaining 1/2 tablespoon olive oil and asparagus. Evenly top gruyere cheese with the veggies.

Whisk eggs, milk, flour, and salt together in a large bowl. Pour over the veggies. Bake at 350˚F for 30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean. Cut into squares. Makes 4 servings.

Nutrition: 355 calories, 21.7g fat, 2.8g fiber, 19.6g protein per serving
Cost: $1.68 per serving

Wednesdays have quickly become my favorite night to relax in front of the TV because I love Top Chef and have become addicted to Glee. I was so disappointed this week when Glee wasn’t on due to the World Series and the “Top Chef All Stars Dinner” was on instead of a new episode. I thought it was pretty boring overall, but did perk up a bit when they showed the clip of Carla working her magic and whipping up an incredibly creative green eggs and ham dish. Why didn’t I think of that? I loved all the Dr. Seuss books growing up – in fact, “Go Dog Go” was the first book I could read by myself. Anyway, I decided to come up with my own version of green eggs and ham as a little tribute to Carla, who SO should have won last season!

I knew I wanted to make the eggs green naturally, so I decided to whip the eggs together with spinach and basil until they were well incorporated in the food processor and then scramble them. I topped the eggs with a bit of crispy prosciutto for my ham component. The basil flavor really came through and I thought this was a great way to sneak in some spinach. I also really enjoyed the contrast of the soft eggs with the crispy prosciutto. This is another recipe I look forward to making for our future kiddos someday!

Green Eggs and Ham
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
1/2 tablespoon olive oil
2 slices prosciutto, chopped
1/3 cup cooked chopped spinach
8 fresh basil leaves
4 eggs
2 tablespoons milk
1/4 teaspoon salt

Directions:
Heat olive oil over medium high heat in a large nonstick skillet and sauté prosciutto 3 to 5 minutes or until crispy. Remove prosciutto from the pan and drain on paper towels.

Meanwhile, place spinach, basil, eggs, milk, and salt in a food processor and mix until well blended. Place eggs in the same pan the prosciutto was cooked in and sauté 2 to 3 minutes or until cooked, stirring frequently. Top scrambled eggs with crispy prosciutto. Makes 2 servings.

Nutrition: 189 calories, 13.8g fat, 0.8g fiber, 13.2g protein per serving
Cost: $1.20 per serving

I was super excited when my friend Shannon organized an apple picking field trip the other weekend to Smolak Farms! Not only would I get to check out a local orchard for the first time, I also would get to meet several of my favorite fellow Boston food bloggers, including Nicole, Kelly, Elina, and Lauren. We all had a great time chatting and discussing which apple varieties to use in our future apple concoctions (check out their sites from some great pictures!), and to top it all off I picked up a pack of spiced apple cider and donuts to enjoy after we got home!

So what exactly do you do with 10 pounds of apples? I’m actually not a huge fan of raw apples. I had one daily for years and then suddenly one day I couldn’t bring myself to even take one more bite, so I guess I just overdid it, but my hubby polished off quite a few and I helped by doing a bit of baking! Apolinaras requested a low fat and sugar apple crisp and I also made my favorite apple coffee cake, which is always on our table when we have weekend guests. Since it’s an upside down cake, there ends up being a lovely spiral of apples sitting atop a moist cake layer spiced with cinnamon, cardamom, ginger, and cloves. The walnuts add an extra crunch! SO good.

Apple Spiral Chai Coffee Cake
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:

Apple Layer:
2 tablespoons butter, melted
1/3 cup packed brown sugar
2 tart baking apples, peeled, cored, and thinly sliced

Cake Layer:
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup butter, softened
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1 cup sour cream
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 large eggs
1 cup chopped walnuts

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350˚F. Grease a 9-inch round cake pan.

Prepare the apple layer. In a small bowl, mix butter and brown sugar. Spread sugar mixture evenly in greased cake pan. Fan apple slices in two concentric circles on top of the sugar mixture.

Prepare the cake layer. In a medium bowl, mix the flour, cinnamon, cardamom, ginger, cloves, baking soda, and salt. Mix thoroughly with a fork and set aside. In another large bowl, mix the butter, sugar, sour cream, eggs, and vanilla extract. Mix until smooth. Slowly mix in the flour mixture and then the walnuts.

Bake at 350˚F for 35-40 minutes or a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean. Cool for 5 minutes or until the cake comes away from the edges of the pan, then run a knife around the outside of the pan, and immediately invert on a serving platter, and cut into wedges. Makes 12 servings.

Nutrition: 330 calories, 25.1g fat, 2.0g fiber, 4.7g protein per serving
Cost: $0.55 per serving

I secretly enjoy checking out wedding registries and seeing what makes couples tick. Are they more excited about the monogrammed towels and fine china or the obscure kitchen gadgets and fancy knife sets? I’m sure you can guess which category we fell into! I was recently browsing through my good friend Emily’s wedding registry to send her a shower gift. Emily is a great cook (her hummus is seriously the best I’ve ever had!), and while I know people want everything on their registries, I still had a great time carefully selecting the kitchen items I thought she would enjoy and use most often.

Unfortunately, I couldn’t make it to her shower because it was being held in Chicago (but we are super excited to go to the wedding in November!), but browsing through her registry made me wonder what they were serving at the shower. That’s just how my mind is wired! I hope they were serving something like this quiche, which I think would be perfect for a fall brunch shower. It’s gourmet enough to serve to company because it’s stuffed with prosciutto, fresh sage, and roasted butternut squash – yum! I’ll definitely be making this again.

Roasted Butternut Squash, Prosciutto, and Sage Quiche
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
1 butternut squash, peeled, seeded, and cut into 1/2-inch chunks
1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 leek (white and light green parts only), chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
4 eggs
2 cups milk
4 slices chopped prosciutto (1/2 cup)
1 cup grated Pecorino Romano cheese
1 tablespoon chopped fresh sage
1 10-inch pie crust

Directions:
Preheat oven to 400˚F. Place squash on a greased cookie sheet and drizzle evenly with 1/2 tablespoon olive oil and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Bake squash for 25-30 minutes at 400˚F or until tender. Lower oven heat to 350˚F.

Heat remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil over medium heat in a large skillet and saute leeks for 5 minutes or until tender. Add garlic and saute one additional minute.

Beat eggs and milk in a large bowl until well mixed. Mix in butternut squash, leeks, prosciutto, cheese, sage, and remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt. Line a 10-inch pie pan with prepared pie crust; pour in quiche mixture. Bake at 350˚F for 45 to 60 minutes, or until set. Cool slightly and cut into 8 wedges. Makes 8 servings.

Nutrition: 330 calories, 20.4g fat, 2.0g fiber, 14.1g protein per serving
Cost: $0.91 per serving

My hubby and I shop for the majority of our groceries together on the weekends, but Apolinaras usually heads to the store by himself when we need something during the week. I try to help him out by structuring the list so it goes in order of the store aisles and usually he remembers everything. But, there’s one thing he never forgets and actually will get without me even asking – mini whole wheat bagels! I go through them really quickly because I like to have one as a snack after work when I’m starving but still need to throw something together for dinner. I also like to make quick mini bagel pizzas when Apolinaras is at one of his networking events and I’m on my own for dinner. But my favorite way to enjoy them is in mini breakfast sandwiches! I’ve already professed my love of breakfast sandwiches and make them practically every weekend.

I decided to mix things up this week adding roasted tomatoes and creamy ricotta cheese mixed with fresh basil, along with my usual eggs and turkey bacon. I think a normal serving is two little sandwiches, which I noted below, but I actually couldn’t resist them and ate three! I was completely stuffed afterwards, but it was worth it. They are addicting!

Mini Bagel Breakfast Sandwiches
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
6 slices turkey bacon
2 small tomatoes, sliced
4 large eggs
2 tablespoons milk
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup part-skim ricotta cheese
1 tablespoon fresh chopped basil
6 mini whole wheat bagels, split and toasted

Directions:
Cook bacon in large skillet over medium high heat until crisp. Remove bacon from skillet; drain on paper towel. Cut each strip in half.

Clean out skillet and add sliced tomatoes. Saute for 5 to 7 minutes over medium high heat or until tender, flipping once.

Spray medium nonstick skillet with cooking spray and heat over medium heat. Whisk eggs, milk, and salt, in a small bowl and add to the skillet. Cook until eggs are set on the bottom and bubbly on top. Cut in half and turn eggs over to finish cooking until eggs are set, then cut eggs into six equal portions.

Mix ricotta and basil in a small bowl until smooth.

Spread ricotta cheese mixture on bottom half of each mini bagel. Top with the tomato, eggs, and bacon. Cover with top halves of muffins. Makes 3 servings.

Nutrition: 456 calories, 16.5g fat, 2.6g fiber, 24.9g protein per serving
Cost: $1.16 per serving

While I was visiting my parents in Des Moines last weekend, my mom and I put on our aprons and chef hats, and collaborated on this breakfast treat. She’s the first source I go to when I need any advice in the kitchen because she’s an awesome high school culinary arts teacher! Her classroom consists of several commercial kitchens and a café her students run, which is open to the public for lunch a few times a week. She not only prepares her students for a restaurant career or culinary school, but also takes them to national culinary competitions, where they cook or bake in teams or individually. I wish I could have taken her classes in high school! I’m hoping to convince her to write a guest blog post about her program and famous chocolate cake when her kids are back in school next year.

I already developed a pancake recipe with my mom in mind since she loves sweets for breakfast, so it was only natural that we come up with another breakfast treat. We decided Boston Cream Pie French Toast would be delicious and my mom had the brilliant idea of using soft dinner rolls to make little mini French Toast stacks! We cut each roll into 3 slices and cooked them up as French toast and then filled the layers with vanilla pudding and topped the stack with chocolate ganache. They tasted very indulgent, but are not really all that bad for you. We had ours with strawberries, but I think any kind of fresh fruit would also be great. Oh, and check out my mom’s cool strawberry fan – she’s always teaching me something!

Boston Cream Pie Mini French Toast Stacks
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
1/2 cup plus 1 tablespoon milk
2 eggs
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
4 soft dinner rolls (ours were about 2 1/2 inches on each side), cut into 3 slices each
1/4 cup semisweet chocolate chips
1/2 cup vanilla pudding (we made instant with 1 3/4 cup milk so it would be on the thick side)
8 strawberries, sliced

Directions:
Whisk 1/2 cup milk, eggs, and vanilla in a pie pan until smooth. Spray large nonstick skillet with cooking spray and heat over medium high heat. Working in batches, dip 12 roll slices into egg mixture on both sides and cook about 2-3 minutes on each side or until golden brown.

In small microwavable bowl, microwave chocolate chips and remaining 1 tablespoon milk on high for 45 seconds, stirring once after 25 seconds, until melted.

To assemble the stacks, layer the first third of each roll, 2 tablespoons vanilla pudding, another third of the roll, 2 tablespoons pudding, and the final one third of the roll. Drizzle 1 tablespoon of chocolate ganache on top of each stack. Garnish with sliced strawberries. Makes 4 servings.

Nutrition: 257 calories, 10.0g fat, 2.5g fiber, 8.4g protein per serving
Cost: $0.89 per serving

This recipe is for my mom. She love pancakes and considers them a breakfast treat. She would often make pancakes on the weekends while my brother and I were growing up and always took the extra time to spell out our names (7 pancakes – score!). She usually ended up making me two Ks, one to munch on while she finished the rest of the letters of my name, and one at the very end to replace the one I had already eaten! I don’t make pancakes very often, but when I do, I want them to be special. My mom also loves the Cheesecake Factory and goes there just about every weekend for Sunday brunch. So, this recipe combines her love of strawberry cheesecake and pancakes!

I usually use whole wheat flour in everything, but I’m not a fan of it in pancakes for some reason, so I tried white whole wheat flour for the first time and was pleased with the results. I added graham cracker crumbs and sliced strawberries to the pancake batter and then drizzled a cream cheese sauce on top instead of syrup. So good and I can’t wait to make these for my mom when we visit in July!

Strawberry Cheesecake Pancakes
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
1/2 cup white whole wheat flour
1/2 cup graham cracker crumbs (3 crackers pulsed in the food processor)
2 1/2 tablespoons granulated sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 egg
1 cup low-fat buttermilk
3 tablespoons butter, melted
3/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup sliced strawberries
2 ounces cream cheese, softened
1 tablespoon milk

Directions:
Mix the flour, graham cracker crumbs, 1 tablespoon sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt together in a medium bowl. Stir in the egg, buttermilk, 2 tablespoons melted butter, and 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract until just combined. Stir in the strawberries.

Pour 1/3 cup scoops of batter onto a greased nonstick skillet over medium heat. Flip the pancakes when bubbles start to appear on top, after about 3 minutes. Cook the other side until golden brown. Makes 6 pancakes.

Mix cream cheese, milk, and remaining 1 1/2 tablespoons sugar, 1 tablespoon butter, and 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract in a small bowl until smooth. Drizzle over pancakes. Makes 3 servings.

Nutrition: 423 calories, 21.8g fat, 2.6g fiber, 9.1g protein per serving
Cost: $0.78 per serving

Apolinaras and I celebrated our 5 year wedding anniversary yesterday! I will restrain myself from being too mushy, but I will say I am thankful every day to be married to such incredible partner. He balances me out, reminds me what really matters, supports my ambitions, and will be the best father when we have kiddos.  I know I am one lucky girl!

To celebrate, we splurged on the six course tasting menu at Craigie on Main in Cambridge. We were both blown away by both the food and unpretentious service. We ended up being served six savory courses and three dessert courses, all of which featured seasonal ingredients from local farms. The highlight was when Chef Tony Maws personally delivered the last savory course (Pork Two Ways: organic grilled vermont suckling confit with a crispy skin and pork belly with barley couscous, fresh greens, and crispy shallots). Our other favorite courses were the Salad of Hiramasa Sashimi (with a gold beet-pine nut-mango salsa, avocado, whitefish roe, and shiso), Curry Oil-Poached and Roasted Dayboat Sea Scallops (with their roe and a ginger pineapple-marjoram sauce), and Crispy Tempura of Maryland Softshell Crabs (with fresh hearts of palm, cipollini onion, and a chorizo sauce). These descriptions do not do the food justice – everything was amazing! I also got to try geoduct and rabbit sausage for the first time and had my first poached egg served with a ragout. I’ve been scared of runny yolks my entire life, but I had already decided to be more adventurous than usual and eat everything they gave us, so I dug in and was surprised that it was rather tasty! The desserts were also excellent (tea-infused panna cotta, olive oil and chocolate mousse, peanut butter cookie sandwiches with grape coulis, and a chilled rhubab puree). Everything was phemonomial and I highly recommend it if you’re ever in the Boston area! They also have a bar and brunch menu, which we’re now eager to check out.

I also did a little celebratory cooking. Apolinaras requested my goat cheese risotto, which I stuffed with fresh asparagus and wild mushrooms for lunch yesterday and then I made a special treat for breakfast this morning –  Banana Bread French Toast Kabobs with Strawberries and Pineapple! The flavors were inspired by my mom’s favorite fruit salad of bananas, strawberries, and pineapple. I made my beloved Betty Crocker banana bread recipe (with 2 1/4 cups of whole wheat flour instead of all-purpose and walnuts), and then made it into French toast by dipping each slice in a mixture of buttermilk, eggs, and vanilla and toasting them up in a hot skillet. I threaded pieces of the French toast along with fresh strawberries and pineapple onto skewers and served it with syrup and a bit of yogurt with toasted coconut on top to dip the fruit into – yum! I thought it was a very cute presentation, but my practical hubby rolled his eyes a bit (“wouldn’t it be less work to serve everything separately?” – I have always loved his honest opinions!). So, perhaps these kabobs would appreciated a bit more at a girly event like a brunch bridal/baby shower!

Banana Bread French Toast Kabobs with Strawberries and Pineapple
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
4 slices of banana bread
1/2 cup low fat buttermilk
2 eggs, beaten
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
12 strawberries, hulled
12 chunks of fresh pineapple

Directions:
Whisk buttermilk, eggs, and vanilla extract in a pie pan until smooth. Spray large nonstick skillet with cooking spray and heat over medium high heat. Dip banana bread into egg mixture on both sides and cook about 2-3 minutes on each side or until golden brown. Slice each piece of French toast into 1 inch squares and make kabobs by alternating a strawberry, chunk of pineapple, and two squares of French toast onto each skewer until fillled. Makes 4 kabobs (2 large servings). Serve with syrup and yogurt topped with toasted coconut, if desired.

Nutrition: 649 calories, 12.4g fat, 6.9g fiber, 21.4g protein per serving
Cost: $3.52 per serving

Having just visited San Diego last fall for our friend Renee’s wedding, I decided to take it easy on the tourist attractions during this trip and instead use my time off from the conference to unwind. I slept in late, ate breakfast while enjoying the amazing views from my hotel balcony, lounged by the pool, did a little shopping in the Gaslamp Quarter, and even caught a movie. But the best part was that I was able to visit with several of my friends who now live in San Diego – Renee, who I’ve known since second grade, and Yaling and Clark, who I went to grad school with in Chicago.

I also had some fabulous food. After my talk on Friday, I went to Osetra Watergrill with several colleagues, where I savored every bite of their tempura-dipped spinach-wrapped tuna. I met Renee and her hubby Max on Saturday at Red Pearl Kitchen, which had excellent cocktails including the Red Pearl, a mix of pomegranate vodka, champagne, cranberry and pineapple juice. We also went to Extraordinary Desserts, which had several cases full of gorgeous treats. I had carrot cake, my absolute favorite (it was one of the cake flavors at our wedding), and it was amazing! Yaling and Clark treated me to dinner at Sushi Ota on Sunday night. Everything was beyond incredible (order the salmon belly!). The right side of my brain is already spinning with new recipe ideas, but today’s recipe is inspired by another place I look forward to going to for breakfast when I travel – McDonald’s.

Yes, McDonald’s! I will admit that I love their Egg and Sausage Biscuit sandwiches but only indulge when I have travel because they have 510 calories and 33g of fat – ouch! I decided to come up with a version I could enjoy anytime that is a bit more nutritious and used some of my favorite ingredients – goat cheese, mushrooms, and turkey bacon.  Now I can look forward to having a yummy breakfast sandwich every weekend!

Egg, Bacon, Mushroom, and Goat Cheese Breakfast Sandwiches
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
2 slices turkey bacon
1/2 tablespoon olive oil
1 cup sliced mushrooms
1/4 cup chopped red onion
2 large eggs
2 tablespoons milk
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 ounce goat cheese
2 whole wheat English muffins, toasted

Directions:
Cook bacon in large skillet over medium high heat until crisp. Remove bacon from skillet; drain on paper towel. Cut each strip in half.

Clean out skillet and add olive oil. Saute mushrooms and onions for 5 to 7 minutes over medium high heat or until tender, stirring occasionally.

Spray small skillet with nonstick cooking spray and heat over medium heat. Whisk eggs, 1 tablespoon milk, and salt, in a small bowl and add to the skillet. Cook until eggs are set on the bottom and bubbly on top. Cut in half and turn eggs over to finish cooking until eggs are set.

Mix remaining 1 tablespoon milk with goat cheese in a small bowl until smooth.

Spread goat cheese mixture on bottom half of the muffins. Top with the mushroom mixture, followed by the eggs and bacon. Cover with top halves of muffins. Makes 2 servings.

Nutrition: 313 calories, 14.4g fat, 5.8g fiber, 19.3g protein per serving
Cost: $1.17 per serving

My kitchen is currently overflowing with Pillsbury brownie mixes and refrigerated cookie dough. Don’t worry, I’m not just looking for a sugar high  - I’ve just started working on recipes for the 44th Pillsbury Bake-Off! Recipes are due April 20 and I encourage all my fellow food bloggers to enter. You’re such a creative bunch and you only need one good idea to win a trip to Orlando and the chance to compete for $1 million!

When I got the exciting call I was a finalist for the last Bake-Off, I was sure that this coffee cake recipe was the one they picked…it wasn’t, but I promise it’s really delicious and super easy to make. It’s also very versatile – you can easily change the kinds of nuts and fruit you use. My mom is addicted and now asks for it every single time I’m home! Ok, I hope I’ve inspired at least one person to have fun creating some recipes – time to get back to the kitchen!

Apricot Pecan Spiral Coffee Cake
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
1/4 cup Land O Lakes Unsalted Butter, softened
1/2 cup packed Domino Light Brown Sugar
1 cup Fisher Chef’s Naturals Pecan Pieces
1/2 cup chopped dried apricots
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 (11-oz.) Pillsbury Refrigerated Crusty French Loaf
1/2 cup Smucker’s Apricot Preserves, melted

Directions:
Heat oven to 350˚F. Grease 8-inch round cake pan. In small bowl, combine butter, sugar, pecan pieces, dried apricots, and cinnamon; mix well.

Unroll bread dough onto floured surface, forming a 13×12-inch rectangle. Spread melted preserves evenly over dough. Sprinkle evenly with nut mixture and press lightly into dough.

Cut dough into 8 even 12-inch long strips. Roll up 1 strip into a spiral. Place spiral on next strip, matching ends of strip as you work, and continue rolling. Add 2 more strips to the spiral in the same way. Place spiral into center of greased pan. Cut remaining 4 strips in half to form 8 6-inch strips. To finish the spiral, loosely wrap remaining strips around the centered spiral in the pan, one at a time, matching ends of strips as you work. Spread completed spiral to fit pan, if needed, by pushing the center of the spiral down and out, so spiral fills and touches edges of the pan.

Bake at 350˚F for 28 to 33 minutes, or until coffee cake is golden brown. Immediately invert on serving platter, cool for 5-10 minutes, and cut into wedges. Serve warm. Makes 8 servings.

Nutrition: 372 calories, 17.6g fat, 2.2g fiber, 5.3g protein per serving
Cost: $5.70 total

I returned from a lab ski trip today (which turned into a snowshoeing trip since it was raining and the slopes were icy), and my hubby immediately requested I make him another protein-packed quiche. He has recently gotten very into weightlifting and is surviving on egg whites, chicken breasts, broccoli, spinach, and grapefruit for the time being. Poor guy. I came up with this quiche recipe several weeks ago to spice things up for him a bit and have been making one every week since then.

This quiche is made completely of egg whites and is packed with spinach and turkey bacon. I only needed to add a touch of blue cheese since a little goes a long way. The interesting part of this recipe is that instead of a standard pastry crust, I decided to develop a more nutritious crust made from chickpeas, whole wheat flour, and a touch of olive oil – I even managed to sneak some of his protein powder in it!

Protein-Packed Quiche with a Chickpea Crust
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
1 15.5-ounce can chickpeas, drained
1/4 cup whole wheat flour
1/4 cup scoop protein powder
2 tablespoons olive oil
6 pieces turkey bacon
2 1/4 cups egg whites
1 cup milk
1 10-ounce package frozen spinach, thawed and well drained
1 ounce crumbled blue cheese
1/2 teaspoon salt

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350ºF. Lightly grease a 9-inch pie pan. Pulse chickpeas, flour, protein powder, and olive oil in a food processor and spread dough evenly over the greased pie pan. Bake the crust for 15 to 20 minutes at 350ºF or until light golden brown.

Meanwhile, place bacon in a skillet and cook over medium-high heat until crispy. Remove from heat and crumble.

Whisk together the bacon, egg whites, milk, spinach, blue cheese, and salt in a medium bowl until smooth; pour into the pie pan over the prebaked crust. Bake at 350ºF for 40 minutes or until set. Makes 8 servings.

Nutrition: 202 calories, 7.7g fat, 4.3g fiber, and 17.0g protein per serving
Cost: $0.85 per serving